moderator applications

[officialnotice]

MODERATOR APPLICATIONS

So you're interested in potentially becoming a moderator here at The Pines. Fantastic! We're definitely in need of one, and we appreciate your consideration. Here's some info on what we're looking for and what we intend for the modding experience to be.

It's a bit to read, but we want you to have at least an idea of what you should expect as a Pines mod before you apply.

why expand our mod team?

It boils down to:

• More manpower. Honestly, this is the primary reason right now. We've just lost a mod, and between working and school, the three of us left are barely able to scrape by with the necessary modwork at current (hence a team of four mods to begin with). If a fourth mod could take up just 25% of the work, it would be a huge relief to all of us.


• More brainpower. While three mods is technically a decent number, often only two can be online at the same time and two mods can quickly turn into an echo chamber. We want one more individual 'on the case', so to speak, to join in our decision-making on a daily basis and to help us brainstorm the best possible ideas for the present and future of the game.

what are we looking for in a mod?

Our ideal criteria are fairly simple:

• We're looking for one more mod, ideally. Depending on the applications we get, this mod will likely function as an equal partner/'head mod' (as opposed to a 'tech mod', since Lins has the tech work pretty well on lock as it is).


• We're looking for a mod who put the players first. That is to say, a mod whose primary motivation for modding is to create a fun and inviting environment for the players to play in. Along those lines, a mod who is willing to consistently prioritize getting to modwork sooner than tags, even if it's just updating a list or two for the day.


• Relatedly, we're looking for a mod with enough time to mod a game. Realistically assess whether or not you'll have at least a couple of hours per week to do work for our game, whether that be fun stuff like write-ups or boring stuff like updating lists.


• We're looking for a mod who can provide solidarity even when opinions differ. Ideally, we will remain a cohesive and forward-thinking team even when mods may have differing thoughts on a subject, because modding doesn't need to be a massive emotional drain on top of everything else.


• ( NEW! ) We are looking for a mod who can demonstrate decent writing capabilities, since the mod we sign on will likely be helping with things like event posts/logs, newbie intro posts, etc, and it's much more efficient for all of us if the mods who glance over it after the fact don't have to make too many edits.


• Mods with past modding experience are not necessary, though if you have any, be sure to mention it! Another benefit you might mention is experience with HTML (such as would be needed to code info-pages and the like), as we have a decent amount of HTML in most of our pages and write-ups and if you aren't at least passably versed in it, one of the others will have to code your pages up for you. (Honestly, anything above 'hopeless at coding' will probably do.)

what should you expect as a mod on our team?

Upon being selected as a Pines mod, you'll be invited to our mod Discord, our preferred medium for mod discussion due to the level of organization and compartmentalization it allows and the ability to easily read back in discussion to catch up on anything missed. (If you haven't used Discord before: It's actually really simple, don't worry, and we'll help you out if you have any questions.)

At that point, the three current mods will get you up to speed on pretty much everything we have so far, from plot to game mechanics and beyond. Our aim for the first month will to get you versed enough in the game to answer most of the questions a player might have, and to get you involved in the brainstorming side of things. We have much of the metaplot figured out on an overarching level, but there's still plenty of room for your ideas to influence the actual details and execution of it.

The task breakdown will get worked out based on what you're most interested in doing. The rest of us are pretty okay with any of the available jobs, so you can just slide in where you fit and we'll go from there.

Meanwhile, plots and events have thus far been decided by the group and executed by one or two of us, but we're hoping to get you involved in the event write-ups and logs to distribute the work a bit more evenly.

All in all, modding here is pretty chill. If you apply and are selected to be a mod but find that it's not working out for any reason whatsoever, you're absolutely welcome to step down. Our main goal may be to put the players first, but another important goal we share is that modding on our team be a positive and generally low-stress experience.

ready to apply?

<b>Who are you?</b>: <b>How can we contact you?</b>: <user name="PLURKNAME" site="plurk.com"> <b>Do you have any experience modding?</b>: If no, don't worry. It won't exclude you from consideration. <b>Do you have any experience coding with HTML?</b>: (Same as above.) <b>Why do you want to be a mod in The Pines?</b>: This can be as long or short as you'd like. <b>Why should we choose you as our co-mod?</b>: Go ahead, don't be shy - tell us how awesome you are.

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